Happy Halloween

 'Tis the season...

Auburn Rubber sports car

One of the many rubber toys Auburn made in the 1950s, this one is about 4 or 5" long. Not sure what car this shape was modelled from, maybe a Ferrari? Guesses welcomed... 

 

Spitfire Instrument panel

This would be nice to own. But it's expensive, far out of my budget.

 For sale on Marketplace.

Alcoa promotes aluminum, 1936

 

One of my vices is vises, Tiger

  Just another solid modern vise made in China, not to be confused with vintage Emmert Tiger Vise made by the Emmert Mfg. Co. in Waynesboro, Pennsylvania...

 

Bates Clipper fairing

 Uhmmm , nope.

St. Pierre Chain-Repair Pliers

  These specialty pliers were designed specifically for opening, closing, and repairing the heavy steel cross links on automobile tire snow chains. Henry St. Pierre filed the design patent for them in 1925, and they were actively produced throughout the mid-20th century. They were frequently manufactured for St. Pierre by the Moore Drop Forging Company. 

St. Pierre Chain Corporation history at Alloy Artifacts.

 

UltraPro 8800 ratchet

 Not an old tool, UltraPro is a house brand of professional-quality tools owned by UAP Inc. (United Automotive Parts), a Canadian subsidiary of Genuine Parts Company. Apparently this line is not available in the USA but the NAPA Carlyle Tools line has many tools sourced from the same manufacturers.

Frazer Nash Shelsley

 "Captain" Archie Brown was partners with H R Godfrey at GN Cyclecars. When that venture failed in 1922 he went on building cars under his own name, continuing with the unique chain drive transmission.  That company also soon failed but the company continued until 1939 under the AFN Limited name, still using the same transmission. 

Artist name is hard to read but could be James Allington. Transmission detail drawing by Ira Epton.

Eric Sloane

 Eric Sloane was an American artist known for his idyllic rural landscapes. He was also a writer, two of his books being A Reverence for Wood and A Museum of Early American Tools.

Planes in formation, Tornadoes

Air International

By "this year" they mean 1984.

 

Monday Mystery, U E & M C Clamp

Just another old worn 6 inch C Clamp.... Although we know U.E. & M. Co. was located at 215–217 W. Ontario St. in Chicago, Illinois. They were in the large commercial tent and theatre hardware business for a period around the turn of the last century. AI insists that the name was a bit of a mystery to historians but Google Lens disagrees, it says it stands for Union Elevator & Machine Company. 

 

Buckle up!

 

Sidecar Sunday

 What's so funny?

Another job you may not want to do; armature winder

 

Imperial Airways 1935

  Poster for Imperial Airways by British artist and designer Theyre Lee-Elliott. The stylized, streamlined shapes come from his famous "Speedbird" emblem of 1932, which was adopted by BOAC after they purchased Imperial Airways in 1939 and is still being used by its successor, British Airways.

 

Standard wire gauge

 No name on this, nothing at all on the back, but a handy little thing to have lying in the bottom of your tool box I guess...

Stutz Bearcat 1920

 Just the thing for the man about town in that time...

Edmunds custom heads

  Eddie Edmunds was a mechanic in Portland, Oregon in the 1930s when he started developing and manufacturing intake manifolds and performance heads. After several years of manufacturing there he moved to Southern California where there were more mold makers and aluminum casting. He made these parts for many engines but eventually went bankrupt in the late 1940s. It's a wonder these parts still turn up. After that his focus changed to installing air conditioning units in cars. Apparently, he passed away in 1969.

Siren Fire chief car

Another windup car by Louis Marx, from the 1930s.

 

Steam Yacht Lyndonia

  A picture to hang in the mancave. The Lyndonia was a yacht built for Cyrus Curtis of the Curtis Publishing Company of Saturday Evening Post and the Ladies Home Journal fame. It was only steam powered for 5 years, the steam engine was replaced with diesel engines in 1925. 

The vessel was acquired by the U.S. Navy in 1941 and commissioned as the USS Southern Seas (PY-32). While serving in the Pacific theatre it was unfortunately sunk during a typhoon off Okinawa on October 9, 1945, with the loss of 13 crew members. 

From the Facebook USS Southern Seas group. Interesting reading..

Ford 5-Z-829 wrench

 Another Ford Model T tool. The left end is for adjusting the bands in the transmission and the right end fits the oil pan drain bolt.

One of my vices is vises, Armstrong Pipe Vice

 

  Frank Armstrong and Henry House started working in the sewing machine factories in Bridgeport Conn but formed their own company in 1870, making steam fitting tools and equipment. House soon left, Armstrong continued the company and in 1882 introduced this pipe vise under  U.S. Patent No. 269,141 featuring the hinged yoke and hardened steel jaws. The company thrived during the steam era and was around at least into the 1950s. 

Short C-23 Sherpa

  To paraphrase interior designer Dorothy Draper "If it looks right, it will fly right".  This isn't one of those. It looks like the box an airplane came in, though to be fair, it was considered to be good and reliable, though slow. Short made 60 of these STOL transports between 1984 and 1997, the biggest operators were the US Army and Air Force, who have both retired the aircraft. 

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Bikes in the 'hood, KZ650

Considered fast in its day, the KZ650 followed the styling lead of the Z1. I remember them mostly in the green. Get a front fender, man!

 

Utica Tools 2001-8 pliers

  Difficult to read the stamped text, but these are "Side Cutting Pattern Button's Pliers" made by Utica Tool. The wire cutter portion is unique. They were manufactured in the late 1930s and into the 40s, the rough black finish might have been wartime production.

 

1968 Fiat 850 cutaway drawings

 Some nice technical cutaways from the Dutch 850 Fiat Special instruction book.

Swallow Sidecars, Model 4, 1928

 

We used to make things in this country #381; Cast iron kettles

 

Here's a cast iron kettle made by the Terreau and Racine company of St. Paul St., Quebec City, a maker of kitchen kettles and other containers- hollowware as it's known.... 

 Charles Terreau arrived from France and started his foundry in 1850, originally making metal fittings for sailing ships. When he passed away 15 years later, his wife continued the business, adding Mr. Racine as president. In the mid 1920s they started making components for refrigeration systems. In 1987 they merged with another company, becoming TR LC Refrigeration and Ventilation.  More at Cast Iron Canada.